The present invention relates to vacuum cleaners. More particularly, the instant invention relates to improvements in a conversion mechanism for converting an upright vacuum cleaner between an on-the-floor cleaning mode and an above-the-floor cleaning mode as desired.
Many vacuum cleaners heretofore developed and presently available are capable of both on-the-floor cleaning and above-the-floor cleaning. Such convertible vacuum cleaners usually employ a suction generating fan and some sort of valve for controlling the application of the suction developed by the fan either to a floor nozzle or to an auxiliary suction inlet located on the housing of the cleaner. One end of a flexible suction hose can be selectively attached to the auxiliary suction inlet. The opposite end of the hose is usually adapted to receive one of a variety of tools, such as brushes, wands and the like, suited for above-the-floor cleaning.
When an upright vacuum cleaner has its handle moved to a non-use or vertical position, it is advantageous to space the nozzle, and the brushroll rotating adjacent thereto, away from the subjacent floor surface so as to prevent the brushroll from wearing a groove in the carpeting or the like on the floor by continued rotation thereagainst. It is also necessary to cut off suction flow from the nozzle in order to enable the fan of the vacuum cleaner to pull a suction at the auxiliary suction inlet. For the latter function, a suction control valve is utilized.
Conversion arrangements for vacuum cleaners have taken many forms. These include the use of an insertable conversion coupling for actuating the suction control valve, hand actuation of the conversion valve, actuating the conversion valve via a pedal and valve actuation via a movement of the handle of the vacuum cleaner. For each of these conversion arrangements, the brushroll also needs to be moved away from the floor surface when converting the vacuum cleaner for off-the-floor cleaning. However, very few of these arrangements have actuated the conversion valve to shut off suction flow from the nozzle and simultaneously moved the brushroll away from the subjacent surface.
One such combined nozzle height elevation arrangement and hose conversion valve arrangement is known. However, this known arrangement employs a rectilinearly moving valve and, therefore, needs a relatively complicated conversion mechanism to both actuate the valve and move the brushroll away from the subjacent floor surface.
Accordingly, it has been considered desirable to develop a new and improved convertible vacuum cleaner which would overcome the foregoing difficulties and others while providing better and more advantageous overall results.